WASHINGTON - Members of Congress and the diplomatic corps gathered on Capitol Hill on the evening of June 14 to welcome His Excellency Professor Perezi Kamunanwire as the new Ugandan Ambassador to Washington.

The co-chairs of the Congressional Caucus on Uganda, Representative Christopher Smith (R-N.J.) and Representative Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.) hosted a reception for Ambassador Kamunanwire in the Rayburn House Office Building. Nearly 200 people, including fellow ambassadors, congressional staff members, journalists, educators, Ugandan citizens living in the Washington area, and others joined to greet the Ambassador.

Kassim Ouma, the junior middleweight champion boxer from Uganda, was one of the celebrities who came to welcome Ambassador Kamunanwire. Ouma, a former member of the Ugandan army boxing team, defeated Marco Antonio Rubio earlier this month in a 12-round bout in Las Vegas.